Don Garber has addressed his confrontation with Lionel Messi following Inter Miami CF Campeones Cup victory over Cruz Azul in September, with the MLS commissioner saying he admired the exchange.
Following the Campeones Cup victory, Messi and Garber could be seen having a heated discussion before the Inter Miami captain went to celebrate the victory with the rest of his team and family members.
"You know, the best players in the world have passion," Garber said in an interview with Front Office Sports on Tuesday. "The legendary players have more than passion. Leo played on Saturday, scored a couple goals and assists coming out of an international window where he played for Argentina, 39 years old. He's leading our rush for Golden Boot. He's leading our MVP race.
"There are players throughout history, Muhammad Ali, Wayne Gretzky, Michael Jordan who play with a sense of intensity and passion that makes them unique and special, and makes him the GOAT of all GOATS. What is going on there is between me and Leo [Messi], it's not something I am going to talk about with you.
"But I admire it, I appreciate it and I think it's what makes Leo Messi the greatest player ever to play football. And I will say, [he's] the greatest athlete of all time."
Inter Miami beat Cruz Azul 2-0 in the Campeones Cup final with a goal from Messi in the 24th minute before he provided the assist to Casemiro for the second goal. Messi currently has 23 goals and 13 assists in MLS, leading the 2026 Golden Boot race and sitting in second place for most assists so far this regular season.
It's not the first time that Garber and Messi haven't seen eye to eye. In 2025, Garber made a joke about Messi not wanting to talk to him following the decision to suspend him and former teammate Jordi Alba for missing the 2025 MLS All-Star Game.
"I don't think he wants to talk to me," Garber said in 2025. "I didn't treat him like any other player in that decision. So, I probably won't be going to Miami any time soon or hanging out and doing any media work with Leo."
Garber later defended his decision to suspend the two players.
"If you don't do that, you're not gonna be able to lead," Garber said. "You're not gonna be able to command the respect of the ownership. The media is going to s--- on you no matter what. You guys will write a story 'how could you suspend Leo Messi?' after we suspended him, and before we suspended him say 'how could you not?'
"So, the media is irrelevant to that equation. They're gonna hate you all the time."
Garber and Messi later interacted at the 2025 MLS Cup, when the MLS commissioner presented the Inter Miami captain with the trophy. Inter Miami currently sits second place on the Eastern Conference table with 49 points from 28 games.